15 Best Gamecube Games Of All Time

Buying the Best SNES Games and the Best N64 Games had a pretty similar feel. You’d take the cardboard box out of your carrier bag, re-read the blurb on the back, remove the plastic wrapping, and then pull out the tray with the game and the instruction booklet.

It was almost like a ritual, something to look forward to before the gaming began. You can imagine how this little process changed when Nintendo started producing discs instead of cartridges; It changed all right, but not for the worse.

The game art got better, the little memory card slots were a lifesaver, and then there were the discs. How could they put a game on something so small!

When I first opened up my GameCube, the whole experience just blew my mind, so much so that it’s still one of my favourite consoles of all time.

I had so many games for this thing that I had to get a bookshelf just to store them all on, and while I can’t list all of them without being here all day, Im going to share the Best GameCube Games in my collection with you.

Maybe you’ve played them, or maybe you’ve never heard of them. Either way, it’s time to get nerdy!

15. Mario Smash Football

Nintendo have always been adamant that multiplayer action should be something that is enjoyed with friends in the flesh, and when you play Mario Smash Football with three other mates fighting for that all-important win, then you begin to realise why they are so right. I spent countless hours on this game, knocking out the special moves and trying and trying to come back from 2-0 down to claim the title of the ultimate striker on the planet. What other game can you play football against an army of robots and blast a ball into a net with a fireball kick? I bet Rooney or Griezmann can’t do that!

Mario Smash Football will always be one of the Best GameCube Games because of its sheer silliness and for its endless play value. Unlocking the different characters and courses is one thing, but trying to beat your smug friends who just never seem to lose will make the hours just soar by. Use items to impede your opponents, punch and kick players without the ball, and work up to that perfect Super Strike to try and knock Kritter into the back of the net. Who will you pick to lead your team to glory?

14. Sonic Adventure 2 Battle

Snowboarding down the streets of San Francisco on the City Escape level will never get old, and finally coming face to face with Dr Eggman’s new super-weapon and ultimate life form ‘Shadow The Hedgehog’ blew my mind. This is another game that had an incredible multiplayer mode; racing along courses with Shadow and Sonic and finding treasure with Knuckles and Rogue was part of our Saturday game plan every week. Man, this brings back memories! Apart from introducing new characters to the franchise, this game was one of the first Sonic games to introduce the idea of not just blasting from one end of the level to the next and actually having to solve things and pick up collectables along the way. And if you get tired of the story, you can always spend time growing your Chao garden with the items that you pick up and create the ultimate tiny hero or devil for more multiplayer action.

Chaos emeralds and rings return as collectibles in this game as you might expect, but unlike other Sonic titles, Adventure 2 Battle gives you the option of playing out the story as both the Good and Evil sides. You can control Sonic, Eggman, Shadow, Rouge, Knuckles, and Tails in this game, playing out each scenario either in favour of saving the world or destroying it. Completing all the campaigns as both sides opens up a final last level in which all the characters work together. Even Nintendo characters like multiplayer action!

13. Super Monkey Ball

The next title on our list of the Best GameCube Games in my collection could well be the cause of multiple cases of what I like to call ‘Gamers Stress Syndrome’ all over the world. Usual symptoms are throwing your controller on the ground, shouting at the top of your voice, and gripping your controller so hard that you look like you’re on a white knuckle ride. But man, is this game addictive. Whoever thought that putting a monkey in a ball and making it roll around tilting courses would be such a ginormous hit! The challenge of nailing the perfect score and getting all the bananas saw me replaying levels over and over again, but that’s what being a dedicated gamer is all about!

Join AiAi, Meemee, Baby, and GonGon as they work their way through multiple worlds in their transparent balls. Help them to collect bananas along the way, and try to make sure they don’t fall off the edge of the course into the abyss as you watch your speedometer race to insane speeds! Take a break from the main game to play some of the amazing party games such as Monkey Fight, Monkey Race, and Monkey Target, or try your hand at Monkey Billiards, Monkey Bowling, or Monkey Golf. I have some amazing memories of playing these games with my Mum, and she’s still pretty kick–ass when it comes to getting a strike with GonGon!

12. Super Smash Bros. Melee

A Nintendo game where you can fight as Link, Captain Falcon, Ganondorf, Nes, Mr Game & Watch, Luigi and more – what is there not to love? Unlocking all of the different characters in this button mashing classic was the best fun in the world, and as you didn’t know whether the unlockable players would appear in single or multiplayer mode, you just had to spend as many hours as possible playing both! I can’t stress how amazing Super Smash Bros. Melee is; seeing Kirby stealing Link’s powers and wearing a green hat will never lose its appeal, and the collectibles that you could pick up to make your fight easier were just insane! Who can remember using the Barrel Hammer from Donkey Kong to K.O their opponents into next year?

Super Smash Bros. Melee is one of the Best GameCube Games for letting off a bit of steam, and the rounds are quite short which means it always stays fresh and exciting. Sudden Death at the end of the match was always tense, and trying to survive till the end of the round with 250% damage took all of your skill to carry out. Play as your favourite character and beat the ones you hate into a pulp, all in a friendly non-violent Nintendo way. It’s practically therapy!

11. Metroid Prime

Is there anyone cooler than Samus Aran? You can keep your Captain Marvel’s and Jessica Jone’s, more people should know about how epic our favourite space pirate really is. Samus has featured in many titles over the years on a number of Nintendo platforms, but Metroid Prime was the one that made me want to don a cyberspace suit and fight crime right alongside her. Collecting all of Samus’ different moves and defeating some of the weirdest alien creatures in existence along the way was mind-blowingly awesome, and the fact that this game uses a first-person format makes the whole adventure even tenser! You’ve never felt fear until you turn around and come face to face with a the dude in the picture below.

After following up on a distress signal from a Space Pirate Ship, Samus battles Meta Ridley and loses her kick-ass abilities. You must navigate your way through the Chozo Ruins and find them all in order to defeat Meta Ridley and restore some sense of normality to the galaxy. The scenery in the levels are stunning, twinning creepy tunnels and caverns with amazing outdoor locations and interesting enemies. Plus the sheer amount of upgrades that you can add to Samus’ suit will keep you playing until the very end!

10. Viewtiful Joe

Glorious 2d action in a movie-like comic book world. That might sound a little confusing, but that sums up the overall vibe of the next title on our Best GameCube Games list. Divided between Earth and Movieland, this side-scrolling brawler was one of the weirder games in my Best GameCube Games collection, but that made it all the more interesting! The game plays heavily on a ‘Hollywood-move’ style theme and is a bit over the top, but that’s why I love it so much. Use VFX to use crank out special moves, defeat monsters twice your size, and do it all while posing for the camera and knocking out slick catchphrases.

After Joe’s girlfriend. Silvia, gets pulled into the screen of a Movie Theatre, our protagonist receives a V-Watch from Captain Blue, a superhero in the very film that they had both been watching seconds before. Joe must use the V-Watch to transform into Viewtiful Joe, a super-hero that looks a little like the Red Ranger from Power Rangers, and navigate his way through the film world, defeating villains along the way in order to rescue his girlfriend and put a stop to all of this madness once and for all! The ‘Chun-Li’ style kick was always my favourite move, but Joe has a bunch of different killer skills up his sleeves that he can use to fight the forces of evil. Give it a try!

9. Prince Of Persia – Sands Of Time

A mysterious Prince that uses a blade to rewind time when he makes mistakes or falls to his death; now that sounds like one gnarly game! Based in Persia (the clue is in the title I guess), our unnamed prince sets out to right the mistakes that his father has made after ransacking a city on the behest of a treacherously wicked Vizier. After releasing the sands of time by accident, the cities inhabitants turn to evil monsters that the Prince must defeat in order to collect the sands and restore balance to the world. It’s a gripping platform game and one that has oodles of playability. I still find it hard to put down!

The Prince Of Persia’s main move is to run along walls a little bit like Neo, but the prince was doing it way before wearing long leather jackets was cool. I remember the first time that I did a wall run on this game to get to a higher platform; it was such a cool moment having a character do something that I had always wished Link could have done in Ocarina of Time. The Water Temple would have been 1’000 times easier with that skill! Anyway, back to the Prince! The graphics on this game were also pretty special, using Ubisoft’s Jade Engine to create some stunning Persian scenery from courtyards through to temple gardens. Any game where you can turn back time is a winner for me, especially when it involves a kick-ass dagger and zombie-style foot soldiers!

8. Mario Party 4

The next title in our list of the Best GameCube Games is, in my opinion, the best party game on not only our favourite-cubed-console, but in the world. The first Mario Party game on the GameCube is still my favourite to this day; the shop system was easy, the magic lantern and the accompanying Genie always felt like cheating even though it was part of the game, and handing over 20 coins for a star is still one of the best bargains in life. For anyone who isn’t akin with Mario Party, it’s a board-game turn-based title in which players move around different courses and collect coins that they can trade for items and, more importantly, stars. Players compete in mini-games at the end of each round, either in teams or against each other, and each course has different elements that are set to spice things up for the players.

There’s also a story mode where you can play against the computer and unlock a sixth course, Bowsers Castle, which is filled with evil stuff and loads of fire. I’m lucky that I was blessed with a cool Mum while growing up, and we used to play Mario Party on an evening and try to determine who the Party Star really was. You can play as your favourite Nintendo Characters including Wario and Waluigi, and the premise of the game is so simple that it’s rated E for Everyone. This is a great multiplayer game to play with friends or family, but it’s also super fun in the 1-player mode too. Everyone loves Mario, and everyone loves a party; it’s a guaranteed recipe for success.

7. Super Mario Sunshine

Speaking of Mario, here he is in his debut GameCube story. After the success of Super Mario 64, his first solo venture on the new console had to be a great hit, and it didn’t disappoint. While holidaying in Isle Delfino, Mario encounters an imposter ‘Shadow Mario’ who has been running amok and destroying the Island. Mario is joined by a water-jetpack type item called FLUDD who helps him to clean up Isle Deflino in a bid to find the 120 shine sprites needed to bring light back to the island. The gameplay is very similar to Super Mario 64, which is never going to be a bad thing, but the graphics have improved tenfold. It’s a fun game with all of the same collectable-gathering action that we’ve come to know and love from our favourite Italian plumber.

It’s nice to have a new location for a Mario Game instead of being based around the Mushroom Kingdom’s usual haunts, and the introduction of the Piantas and Nokis, Isle Delfino’s residents, is a nice little feature. You will, however, be pleased to know that you still have to save Princess Peach from Shadow Mario while cleaning up the mess that the islanders have blamed you for, so there’s still a sense of familiarity to this title. Can a plumber not get a break around here! Looks like Mario’s going to have to wait a while longer before he can relax in the sun, but at least he can have a ride around on Yoshi when he gets bored and cool off with FLUDD when things get a little too heated!

6. Luigi’s Mansion

From one plumber who can’t get a break to another plumber who can’t stop breaking out into a cold sweat. I waited so long for this game to come out; I counted down the days until it’s release, reading all of the reviews and checking out sneak-peak videos all the while before the big day. Luigi has always been one of my favourite characters as he’s never in the limelight. I always liked to imagine what he was getting up to while Mario was out saving the day, and it turns out he was trying to clean up mansions for Professor E. Gadd with a super hi-tech vacuum cleaner. Who would have thought it!

This game is without a doubt one of the Best GameCube Games on the console. Seeing Luigi creeping around the mansion and sneaking up on unsuspecting ghosts brings a whole new thrill-factor to our lesser-spotted green plumbing friend. What Luigi lacks in courage, he makes up for in comedy value and job satisfaction; I’ve never seen anyone this determined to do such a dangerous and terrifying job! Collect new upgrades for your Poltergust 3000; find coins and hearts along the way through your mansion; and suck up pictures, dust, leaves, tablecloths, and more to find secrets that will help you along your quest. If you’re looking to get the new game that’s coming out for the Nintendo Switch soon, then start from the beginning and check out the title that started it all off!

5. Star Fox Adventures

Fox McCloud was bad-ass enough up in the sky while flying his Arwing, but put him down on the ground with a load of dinosaurs and give him a staff to fight his way around with, and you’ve got yourself another of our Best GameCube Games. It’s eight years after Andross’ defeat, but there’s no rest for Fox and the gang. This time our furry-tailed friend is heading after General Scales and the Sharpclaw army in an attempt to save the Earthwalker Tribe and bring peace back to Dinosaur Planet. He also teams up with a Lady Fox named Krystal who lost her home when General Scales attacked. Looks like life on the ground isn’t too bad after all, ey Fox?

RARE have done it again with this rich adventure classic. The colours and scenery in the game are something to behold, and the worlds themselves are all full of surprises at every turn. The gameplay in Star Fox Adventures is very similar to the Zelda game series; you can use your staff to fight in melee style combat, unlock hidden items, and solve puzzles that allow you to move onto the next area in a world. Heart pieces can be collected to up your strength, and there are boss battles that you must complete in order to progress. You can also fly in your Arwing to different areas of the planet once you get far enough through the story, trying your hand at dodging objects in space as you make your way from one part of the world to another. It’s a great adventure game from the genius minds over at RARE and one that you should definitely give a try!

4. Pikmin

This game both infuriated me and filled me with pride in equal measure, and any game that can bring up such a strange mixture of feelings deserves a place in our Top GameCube Games article for sure. In homage to Lemmings, this game sees you pulling little flower creatures that follow you around aimlessly and help you to solve puzzles and problems in order to retrieve pieces of your broken ship. Captain Olimar, an intrepid space adventurer with an oddly shaped head and a fatal Oxygen allergy, has 30 days to fix his ship before he dies on the planet in which he has crash-landed. The plant–based animals that live on the planet, otherwise known as Pikmin, are here to help him to find his parts and return to his home planet. Sounds simple, right? Think again.

The game lasts for 30 days which are all around 13minutes each in real-time. You can’t do anything at night because predators will eat your Pikmin, and if you don’t fix your spaceship in time, then it’s game over for you and your little plant friends. Use your red Pikmin to carry heavy objects and walk through fire, your yellow friends to jump up high and throw bombs, and your blue Pikmin to find things in puddles or pools. Trying to keep them alive is like looking after 1000 children all at once and even more stressful because they’re always being eaten by monsters! Still, it’s a great puzzle game and one you should try if you have a strong disposition.

3. Mario Kart Double Dash

No list of the Best GameCube Games would be complete without a Mario Kart title! Mario Kart double dash is a pretty unique game in itself as it is the first to see players picking two characters per race instead of just one. One character races the players chosen car, and the other stands on the back and throws items at opponents. It’s a slightly odd feature seen as though we’ve done so well with just one character for so many years, but it’s a Mario Kart title, so we’ll let it slide. Players can switch at any time and you can team up with a friend on the same kart instead of going head to head! Choose your friends wisely though guys; you don’t want someone ruining all the good driving that you’ve put in to get you into the lead!

Mario Kart Double Dash saw the introduction of even more new characters to the Mario Kart scene, along with new power–ups and courses. With the success of Mario Kart 64, Double Dash had to pull out all of the stops to improve on its predecessor. It went on to become the second best selling game on the GameCube, so i think that it did pretty well. Play through your favourite modes such as Grand Prix, Time Trial, and the much-loved Battle mode where players must use all of the weapons at their disposal to defeat their opponents. It’s a one-stop-shop for Nintendo racing madness, which is why it has cemented itself as one of the Best GameCube Games of all time.

2. Star Wars Bounty Hunter

Jango Fett was always one of my favourite Star Wars Characters, especially seen as though his dad was the only person smart enough to capture Han Solo. Star Wars Bounty Hunter sees you play as Jango himself, following a mission from Darth Tyrannus in a bid to rid the galaxy of the Bando Gora. They’re basically a criminal gang who worship the Force, but they’re causing a lot of bother for old Tyrannus and Darth Sidious, and they want them out of the picture. Jango goes on a mission to take down their leader and receive more money than he knows what to do with in return. But as with all evil crime rings and the promise of money on completion of a dangerous task, it’s not as easy as it sounds.

Jango uses a blaster pistol in each hand, so it’s easy to shoot down multiple enemies as you make your way through the different levels, There are plenty of different power-ups to pick up along the way to improve your bounty hunting skills, as well as items that will help Jango to defeat the Bando Gora once and for all. You can also earn a little extra cash on the side by completing bounties that you find on Jango’s scanner as you go. He never takes a day off! I waited so long for this game to arrive as it got imported from a different country. At least that’s what my Mum told me when it didn’t arrive on my birthday, but maybe she just forgot. Either way, it has some special memories related to it and I loved it once it finally arrived, so I’m sticking it in the list.

1. Legend Of Zelda – The Wind Waker

If you’ve read any of my articles before, then you’ll know I’m a massive Zelda nerd. I love everything about this series of games, and if I had to choose one hero to be from any game it would definitely be Link. I was sceptical when I first saw the cell-shaded Link and the cartoony graphics in Wind Waker, but boy was I wrong to be worried. Every copy of this game sold out in minutes in my local town, but I remember going with my Mum to look for a copy and found one in a second-hand game shop. I don’t think it had even been opened, and it came with the Master Quest Ocarina Of Time discs too which was a great bonus! For those of you that haven’t played it, go take a long hard look in the mirror and ask yourself why, and then come back to your computer and head to eBay. It’s one of the Best GameCube Games of all times for crying out loud!

The adventure starts on Outset Island where our green-garbed hero is still in his pyjamas. Gannondorf is searching for any girls who look like Princess Zelda so that he can take her part of the Triforce for himself. He sends a big bird over the sea to hunt for girls with pointy ears, and it ends up capturing Link’s sister. To cut a long story short, Link befriends some pirates, gets washed up near a talking boat, and has to collect different items using the power of the wind to save his sister and defeat Ganondorf. I’ve played this game so many times that I’ve lost count, but I always spot something new that I missed the previous time. It might not be Ocarina or BOTW, but the story is incredible and the graphics allow for some amazing boss battles that will stick with you forever. Stop whatever you’re doing and go put it on now; you can thank us later.

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